Knee strap

[BrokenBones]

I was looking up the vinaya for the reason monks will uncover a shoulder (didn't find the exact answer- is it when teaching?); when I came across reference to a knee strap to help with posture.

What exactly is the knee strap that is being referred to?

Thanks

[User13866]

Seeing that this gets no response i'll guess it's a strap for sitting cross-legged. I can see it being useful for leaning up against.

[Sam Vara]

I was looking up the vinaya for the reason monks will uncover a shoulder (didn't find the exact answer- is it when teaching?); when I came across reference to a knee strap to help with posture.

What exactly is the knee strap that is being referred to?

Thanks

I don't know the context, but it might just mean a support or brace for the knee, the type of thing people use for sports injuries. Check it out on Amazon and you'll see what I mean. Someone might think that a better-supported or strapped-up knee could help them with sitting through pain.

[BrokenBones]

Yes, it probably is something like that. I just wondered what sort of thing was available in the Buddha's time.

[bazzaman]

I recently experimented with using a knee strap while sitting. I have decades old cartilage problem in one knee. When I sit Burmese-style pressure would seem to build and seek release. The result being the knee would "pop" and there would be short/sharp pain.
But I suspected that this pressure/release thing was the result of some, as yet unaccessible, psychic knot.
I was aware that Tibetan yogis used knee strap in order to support the body during long sits. So I experimented with one for a few weeks.
I used an old nylon fibre luggage strap... one of the larger ones, about 3 inches wide (7.6cm). I attached velcro strips on each end to make it easy to adjust the length.
The strap went around both knees and the small of the back.
In the end it was more trouble than it was worth. I concluded that, since the cause of the pressure build-up was some holding that I was doing unconsciously, I would have to find some way to become aware of that, and let go of it.
But I could imagine that using such a strap might be helpful in some cases.

[Sam Vara]

I recently experimented with using a knee strap while sitting. I have decades old cartilage problem in one knee. When I sit Burmese-style pressure would seem to build and seek release. The result being the knee would "pop" and there would be short/sharp pain.
But I suspected that this pressure/release thing was the result of some, as yet unaccessible, psychic knot.
I was aware that Tibetan yogis used knee strap in order to support the body during long sits. So I experimented with one for a few weeks.
I used an old nylon fibre luggage strap... one of the larger ones, about 3 inches wide (7.6cm). I attached velcro strips on each end to make it easy to adjust the length.
The strap went around both knees and the small of the back.
In the end it was more trouble than it was worth. I concluded that, since the cause of the pressure build-up was some holding that I was doing unconsciously, I would have to find some way to become aware of that, and let go of it.
But I could imagine that using such a strap might be helpful in some cases.

I would think that it would be recommended for short-term injury rather than a long-term condition.

[Bhikkhu Cagasampanno]

A knee strap is used by one who has undertaken the intermediate grade of the sitter's practice. It is a strap of cloth or rope that is looped around the knees and shoulders to prevent one from falling backwards and lying down while asleep, and thus breaking the sitter's practice determination. The mild grade is where one will rest their back on a post or wall, while the severe grade is where one sits with no support.

With Metta,
Bhikkhu Cagasampanno